DocuShare 2.2 Quick
Reference

This guide provides an overview of DocuShare's most commonly used features.
It is intended for users who want quick answers and feel they have a good
understanding of web-based technology. Consult the User's Guide for a more
complete and detailed description of DocuShare functions.

Getting Started

Platform Requirements

You can access and use DocuShare from a standard web browser on any computer platform and operating system for which World Wide Web access is available, including Microsoft Windows 95, 98 and NT; Macintosh; and Sun, Solaris and SGI (UNIX).

Browser Requirements

Internet Explorer 3.0 and Netscape Navigator 2.0, and their subsequent releases are known to work well with DocuShare. Other browsers will need to
support "client-side cookies" for log in, and 3rd party "viewers" for
display of diverse content formats.

DocuShare supplies an optional file-upload helper application for
installation on your computer if your browser does not support file-upload. (For
example, Internet Explorer 2.0 and 3.0 do not support file-upload.) This is
available for Windows 95/98/NT, NT 3.51 and Windows 3.x. Installation
instructions are in the User's Guide.

To make the most effective use of DocuShare, the following browser attributes
should be set:

Browser Caching: Turn off caching by setting your browser to "Check Every
Time".

Helper Applications: You will need to configure your web browser's Helper
(or Viewer) settings to use the appropriate applications to read files stored
on your DocuShare server. Most browsers help you make these settings each time
you encounter an unrecognized file type. To pre-configure your browser, see
the "Getting Started" chapter of the User's Guide.

Terminology

The information you store on a DocuShare server is described here as
"objects". DocuShare objects include File, Collection, Saved Query, URL, Bulletin
Board, Bulletin, Subscription, Calendar, Event, User and Group. Four of these objects -
Collection, Saved Query, Bulletin Board, and Calendar - may contain other objects and are
called container objects.

Becoming a user

The DocuShare Site Administrator has the option of altering the DocuShare
server's policies for site access, account creation, and general registry
information. Under DocuShare's default access policy, anyone can view public
areas of the server as user "guest". To set up your own user account, click on
"Accounts" on the home page or the navigation bar at the top of all other pages.
Registered users can add and edit objects and access more areas of the server,
according to their access settings. After creating your account, you will not
have access to restricted information in DocuShare until you contact the
owner(s) of the information and ask them to give you access.

Navigating the Site

A typical DocuShare site is navigated using normal web hypertext operations. The content is presented in the familiar model of nested directories or folders, called collections. An important difference is that DocuShare
objects may exist in more than one collection at the same time, thus leveraging
the web's powerful hypertext capabilities.

A typical Collection page is shown above. At the top is a navigation bar for general
DocuShare utilities such as Search and Help, followed by the
Collection's title, summary and brief description. The Edit pull-down menu lists operations
that can be performed on the Collection, such as delete, edit properties, edit
permissions, and add content. Below the pull-down menu is the collection's content, which
may include other collections, files, URLs, calendars or bulletin boards. Other
operations are available as you follow links to other relevant pages. For
example, all objects' editing functions, such as Edit Properties, Edit
Permission and Edit Location can be found on the object's Services page.

Permissions

Every DocuShare object has an owner and an access list of users and groups.
Each user or group on the access list has one or more permissions to the
object:

Reader The user or group can read the object and see its properties
but cannot edit the object in any way.

Writer The user can edit the object content and properties, edit its
location, lock/unlock a file and add new file versions. Writer access does not
automatically give Reader access.

Manager The user is given Reader and Writer permission, and can
delete the object and edit its permissions.

An object's permissions are accessible through the Permissions option in the
object's Edit menu on its Services page. Adding a user or group to an object's
access list is accomplished from the Edit Permissions page. This is available
only with Manager access.

A new object inherits its permission settings from its container when it is
added. If the permissions of the container object change, the new permissions do
not propagate to objects it contains. The Unify command on the container
object's Permissions page provides a means to propagate a container's current
permission settings to all of the objects it contains.

User groups provide a convenient way to manage permissions on objects. A
group can contain users and other groups. Assigning permissions to a related set
of objects to a group allows you to edit only the group, and not all the
objects, when needs change. The definition and management of groups is available
in the DocuShare Community Registry.

How to...

Add new information (Collection, File, Calendar, etc.)

New content is added to an existing Collection, Calendar or Bulletin Board by
selecting the desired type of object from the Add menu in its pull-down menu. For
example, the following object types are available for addition to a
collection:

Collection

A general container object.

Saved Query

Allows users to store the query used in a search and reuse it again at a later
time

File

A user document, including both the original file and information about
that file such as title, summary, author and keywords.

URL

A web pointer (URL) to relevant information, typically to an area
outside of the current DocuShare server.

Bulletin Board

A container for simple bulletins to yourself or other
users.

Calendar

A general calendar of events.

For each object type being added, you will be presented with a form that asks
for information about it, such as its title, summary, and keywords. After
filling out the form and clicking the Apply button, the object will be created,
given a unique identifier (e.g., Collection-37) and made to appear in its
initial parent object, which is the object being viewed when the Add
command was selected. The new object's initial permission settings will be equal
to those of its parent. In addition, the parent's owner will be given
manager-level access to the new object. You, the user who created the new
object, will be its initial owner and thus have manager-level
access.

Add new files (browser)

The Add File command on every collection's pull-down menu initiates the
process for web browser users. You can use a browser to add (upload) files in
one of two ways: 1) using an upload-capable browser, such as Netscape Navigator
2.0 and greater, or 2) using a separate UpHelper application available for free
from your DocuShare site. The method of file upload used at any given time is
controlled by two factors. First, DocuShare will attempt to determine if you
have a file-upload-enabled browser and prevent you from attempting upload via an
incapable browser. Second, your User record contains an attribute called Use
Helper for Upload, which may be set to one of three values:

Never

. Never use UpHelper.

When Necessary

. Use the browser when possible, and otherwise use
UpHelper.

Always

. Always use UpHelper, never the browser. This setting is
required if you use an upload-enabled browser but still wish to use UpHelper
because of its multi-file (bulk) upload features.

Edit your User record's Use Helper for Upload attribute to the
desired setting.

Add new files (Windows)

Windows users may add new or revised files in several ways. One approach is
to use the Add Document button in the Windows Explorer button bar. This
allows you to select an existing file, enter information about that file, and
then upload it to the DocuShare server. Another approach is to select Save As
after completing a new document from within the relevant authoring application
(e.g., Microsoft Word) and save the file directly to DocuShare. Finally, you may
use the standard Windows Explorer drag-and-drop operations to move or copy files
from your local drive to DocuShare.

Edit existing information

All commands to edit an existing object, including Edit Properties, Edit
Location and Edit Permissions, are available from the object's Services page.
When listed as members of a collection, all objects have a Services link in the far right column that will take you to the object's Services
page. In addition, collections, calendars and bulletin boards have an Edit
Properties option in their toolbar that will also take you to the Edit
Properties page.

Edit a file (create a new version)

Documents can be opened and edited within their native authoring environment,
then saved back to DocuShare as a new version of the document.

To revise an existing file using a web browser:

Click on the file's CheckOut icon from a collection listing, or select the
Check Out option from the Edit menu on the file's Services page. This
will lock the file and open it in the appropriate editor. Locking the file
indicates to other potential authors that you are working on the document and
prevents them from uploading new versions.

Edit the document.

If the editor is an ODMA-compliant application (e.g., Microsoft Word), use
the editor's Save As option to locate the file on the DocuShare server and
save the updated file as a new version. Alternatively, save the updated file
to a temporary location on your local disk and click New Version from
the file's Services page on DocuShare.

To revise an existing file using the DocuShare Windows Client:

Select the file to be revised and choose Check Out with the right
mouse button. This will lock the file and open it in the appropriate editor.
Locking the file indicates to other potential authors that you are working on
the document and prevents them from uploading new versions.

Edit the document.

When done, select the Close option from the editor's File menu. For most
applications, you will be asked if you want to save the file as a new version
on DocuShare. Click on Yes.

Command Quick
Reference

DocuShare commands are presented as menu options in each page's toolbar. No
one is allowed to add or edit information when not logged in, independent of
individual object permission settings. These commands are also available by
directly typing the appropriate URL. The command name in bold is how the
command appears in DocuShare's menus. The command name below it, in
italic, is the command as it appears in the URL that invokes the
command.

View PropertiesViewProps

Function:

Display the object's Services page, where the object's properties, such
as its title, summary and creation date are displayed, and a variety of
editing services are accessible.

Authorization:

Anyone with Read access to the object.

Location:

When listed as members of a collection, all objects have a
Services link in the far
right column that will take you to the object's services page. In
addition, collections, calendars and bulletin boards have a View
Properties option in their Edit menu that will also take you to their
services page.

Edit Properties
EditProps

Function:

Edit the object's properties, which include its title, summary, and
description. Location and permission settings are not considered
properties.

Authorization:

Anyone with Write access to the object.

Location:

The object's Services page.

Add
Add / handle / class

Function:

Add a new object of type class to the container object whose
handle is handle.

Authorization:

Anyone with Write access to the container object
handle.

Location:

Pull-down menu of any collection, calendar or bulletin board
page.

Create
UserAddUser

Function:

Create a new user account.

Authorization:

Depends on Account Creation Authority parameter set by site
administrator. Defaults to anyone.

Location:

Accounts (Community Registry) page.

Create
GroupAddGroup

Function:

Create a new permission group.

Authorization:

Any logged in user.

Location:

Accounts (Community Registry) page.

Delete
Delete

Function:

Delete the current object. When applied to a collection, you will be
given the option to delete all of the collection's contents as
well.

Authorization:

Anyone with Manager access to the object.

Location:

The object's Services page. For collections, calendars and bulletin
boards, it is also available in the Edit menu of the object's main
page.

Edit Location
EditLocation

Function:

Change the place(s) in which an object appears; this includes adding
locations, removing locations, and moving the object from one location to
another.

Authorization:

Anyone with Write access to the object.

Location:

The object's Services page.

View
View

Function:

View a container object (Collection, BulletinBoard, Calendar) and its
contents.

Authorization:

Anyone with Read access to the object.

Location:

An object's title, when appearing in a collection
listing.

Get
Get

Function:

Get a file. The file will be displayed in the browser when possible or
will download to the user's machine. The specific action depends on the
browser's Helpers settings.

Authorization:

Anyone with Read access to the file.

Location:

Object's title link, when appearing in a collection
listing.

Lock
Lock

Function:

Lock a currently unlocked file. This prevents any other user from
adding a new version of the file until you have unlocked it. The file will
be unlocked automatically if you add a new version. Delete will still be
allowed.

Authorization:

Anyone with Write access to the file.

Location:

The file's Services page.

Unlock
Unlock

Function:

Unlock a currently locked file. This allows other users with Write
access to add new file versions.

Authorization:

Anyone with Write access to the file.

Location

The file's Services page.

Check Out
CheckOut

Function:

Lock a currently unlocked file and then get the file, opening it in the
appropriate application.

Authorization:

Anyone with Write access to the file.

Location

The file's Services page.

New Version
NewVersion

Function:

Check-in a new version of a file. The previous version is saved in and
remains accessible from the file's version history.

Authorization:

Anyone with Write access to the file.

Location:

The file's Services page.

History
History

Function:

View the version history of a file. Each entry represents a different
version, with information about when the version was created, who created
it, and comments associated with it. Any past version may be retrieved
from the history listing.

Authorization:

Anyone with Read access to the file.

Location:

The file's Services page.

Permissions
Permissions

Function:

View or Edit the object's permissions. Shows the list of users and
groups and their authorization settings, as well as the object's Private
attribute.

Authorization:

Anyone with Manager access to the object will be presented with the
Edit page. Anyone else with Read access to the object will be presented
with the View page.

Location:

The object's Services page. For collections, calendars and bulletin
boards, it is also available in the Edit menu of the object's main
page.

Add to Access
List EditACL

Function:

Add more users and groups to an object's permission access list. Once
on that list, they can then be granted specific
permissions.

Authorization:

Anyone with Manager access to the object.

Location:

The object's Permissions page.

Unify
Unify

Function:

Unify the permissions of all objects within a collection, calendar or
bulletin board. This assigns the current object's current permission
settings to all objects contained within it.

Authorization:

Anyone with Manager access to the current object. Unify will only
change objects within it for which you have Manager
access.

Location:

The object's Permissions page.

Change
OwnerChangeOwner

Function:

Assign ownership of an object to another user.

Authorization:

Anyone with Manager access to the object.

Location:

The object's Permissions page.

Change
PasswordChangePassword

Function:

Change your account's password.

Authorization:

Account owner.

Location:

User Services page, which is found by clicking on your account name any
place it appears, such as at the top of the page when logged
in.

Change UserName
ChangeUserName

Function:

Change your account's username, which is the name you use to log into
DocuShare.

Authorization:

Account owner.

Location:

User Services page, which is found by clicking on your account name
anywhere it appears, such as at the top of the page when logged
in.

Month View
CalendarMonth

Function:

Switch from viewing a calendar in a week-by-week format to a
month-by-month format.

Authorization:

Anyone with Read access to the Calendar. Does not alter the object or
any other user's view of the object.

Location:

Pull-down menu of any month-level view of the calendar.

Week View
CalendarWeek

Function:

Switch from viewing a calendar in a month-by-month format to a day
planner style week-by-week format.

Authorization:

Anyone with Read access to the Calendar. Does not alter the object or
any other user's view of the object.

Location:

Pull-down menu of any month-level view of the calendar.

View Expired
ViewExpired

Function:

View a bulletin board's expired bulletins. The option to delete a set
of the expired bulletins is also offered.

Authorization:

Anyone with Read access to the bulletin board. Deleting expired
bulletins is only available to users with Write access to the bulletin
board.

Location:

Pull-down menu of any bulletin board.

MailTo
MailTo

Function:

Send email to a Group. This uses your browser's email function, which
must be properly configured to send email.

Authorization:

Anyone

Location:

The group's Properties page.

Index
Index

Function:

List the nested Table of Contents of a collection. Defaults to
displaying only the first 5 levels. Optional "/n" argument allows
specification of an alternate display depth. Only Collections are
displayed.

Authorization:

Anyone with Read access to the Collection. Only readable content will
be displayed.

Location:

Navigation bar.

IndexAll
IndexAll

Function:

List the nested Table of Contents of a collection. Displays full depth
and all object types contained within the Collection.

Authorization:

Anyone with Read access to the Collection. Only readable content will
be displayed.